Bikes and boats...Lido

Absolutely ready to leave the Jade this morning....sensory overload comes to mind!

The AliLaguna is a ferry that takes you around the city on the lagoon rather than through it on the Grand Canal and it was a FULL boat. Arriving on Lido, southernmost of the 118 islands that make up Venice, a half hour later, we were ready for a cab (yes, cars) the "800 meters down the street and left..." sounded formidable (remember the bridges!). The taxi left us at a lovely Bed & Breakfast called " Villa Casanova".

On our short drive we had seen a lot of people on bicycles. Our room wasn't to be available for a couple of hours so we asked if there was a bike rental near. Lo and behold! She had bikes out back for us. Interesting bikes...we chose the two that seemed to fit our respective heights. What wasn't broken on one was rusted on another, but we took off to rattle our way around the island, no gears, no helmets, one brake.



It turned into great, interesting fun. Lucky for me that I had gone with Mike on one of their Cruisers a few weeks back, so I felt a LITTLE more comfortable on a big bike with no gears...we did NO downhills though as I did entertain a few thoughts of how embarrassing it would be to pitch into a canal...I knew I would live through the dip, just not through the telling of the story.

First to the beach. The season is over so the beach houses look like a weird ghost town of big brown closets We found one beach with umbrellas and people. The sand was thick with shells ( probably not a barefoot place) and the water was cool and refreshing...not that I got in, just finger tested.


NO ONE was here an this was ONLY one row...there were MANY





Notice the panel at the head of the lounges to cover the sun lover's face.

Found an old neighborhood that had died somewhere back in time,
vines dripping and tentacled to shutters. Stucco missing in huge splotches, signs in occasional rooms that someone had "tried" recently. Trees dead, grass dry or overrun. Then we came to a perfectly alive, if hidden, hospital, not well marked ( we identify ambulances pretty well in any country). The fountain out front has seen more glorious days, but it had a busy family of turtles to admire


Hospital far Back...abandoned buildings at right



These were only two of about 8 sunning turtles


There were lovely manicured streets,some beautiful old villas, a busy downtown, not clotted with tourists, but busy with lunch for the locals and just a bunch of tourists (usually have maps). We lunched in the beautiful weather at an outdoor cafe not far from some picturesque neighborhood canals.


Back at Villa Casanova, we checked in ... And took a nap.

After which we retrieved bikes to see the REST of the island, which went through a bunch of real roads, schools, horse arena, archery grounds ( not sure what they might be called), soccer fields, canals thick with parked boats ( we are still in Venice) on to a narrowing road along the beach where we saw cement factories, a couple of small town-like enclaves, vegetables growing...the working end of the place. All this while we were on a narrow road with WIDE busses zipping by, all manner of Vespas and motorcycles at any speed and MANY on bicycles. We may have seen 10 real bikers: colorful shirts, Lycra and helmets...the other hundred of us, mostly women, mostly wearing dresses, were NOT wearing helmets

A bicycling lady, near my age, in her dress, riding opposite direction across one street...nodded amiably to me as if in acknowledgement that we are comrades on bikes. Tom thought I looked quite Italian...riding around with no helmut.

Naturally we needed to go to the end of the island...and then sprint back so we could watch the Norwegian Jade escorted through the narrow strait on it's way back to the Greek Islands.



Tom was pretty content to know that he, who will be 70 in two weeks, was not as tired as I after this 30 k circumnavigation of the island.

The most perfect sunset we have seen in years settled over Venice as we shared another great meal on the waterfront.

The Sunday trip from Lido to Milan/Malpensa took all day...nice trains..but all day.

We went for a final walk in the "hood" around our hotel...again, some well kept Villas and houses...some completely devastated and abandoned, within blocks of each other.

This morning, as we had made a reservation for the LAST van to the airport, it became obvious that we had more people and luggage than could reasonably be expected to fit into one vehicle ( we had no school bus). We made the cut for the first van, but arrived at the airport...without Tom's red suitcase...Another day, another story...




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Location:Lido-Venice-Italy

Mary spent her final years near Ephesus

Three and a half million of Turkey's Seventy three million citizens live in the area surrounding Izmir...pretty dense building patterns! Izmir is a MAJOR shipping port, stacks of containers heading somewhere! However, as we drove the hour and a half south to Ephesus you could have been driving California's Central Valley ...they grow corn, peaches, apricots, walnuts, figs watermelons, all manner of vegetables, grapes for raisins and wine ( yes, they have a "baby" wine industry). In 1922 the governments of Greece and Turkey "exchanged citizens" so Greeks are Greek and Turks are Turkish...(I, wonder if they asked the exchangees if they wanted that?), our guide explained that it is a secular country and as such people are expected to be good within themselves, but can drink alcohol and still go to prayer...we passed a significant brewery, and were served wine at lunch.



On to Mary...
Three Popes have visited the church built near where The Blessed Mother probably lived out her life. It is a lovely place and felt rather special to be there...it is, of course, overwhelmed with cruise ship visitors these days, but still a special place...hard to explain


Ephesus itself is larger than Pompeii ( seems important to the locals) and was once populated with 100,000 citizens and slaves. There was a good sewage system (into the Aegean ) plenty of water, homes built into the hillside, a library containing 12,000 "books", a lively downtown , a theater to seat 20 thousand, a very large shopping area or Agora as it was called
and baths in several strategic places in town. Of note is the men's bath where there were many places to sit...and they sent their slaves in the early morning to "warm the seats" which were cold marble. We're told there was a roof and a lovely mosaic to look at while they pondered....


The Library:



Look comfy??r

The city moved four times...the rivers silted up and the waterfront kept moving away...we visited the third site...now 5 miles from the sea.


The theater...until two years ago they had concerts here...more excavation and repair now on the right.


This is the last entry street from the seaport...before it moved again.
It is good to know how many people lived here because it was probably as crowded as we were with our fellow cruise travelers...this is a rare opportunity to be just one in a place.

There is something to be learned from that.

Location:Izmir, Turkey

Little thoughts...

Cruising for two weeks now, you cannot help but notice:

...Preparing green salad for two thousand is less than effective...

...Two thousand pounds of chicken per week...tends not to work so well, either...probably why they have 8 thousand of beef and two thousand of pork. You have to be strong to like the chicken..

...you can choose to share your dinner table, a nice idea. We happened to be seated with a woman who overwhelmed us and her sister and brother in law...She was quite nice, but you could only sit and watch her talk...she had lived in Denver 28 years and we knew people in common...

You can also feel isolated on a ship like this...doesn't lend itself to personal conversations and exchange of emails...

Half an hour at the pool is an education in variety of styles and sizes of swim suits and the courageous choices women and men make (speedos...really?)

"old" moments are ever lurking out there (remember the suitcase Helpers?): I thought I had done pretty well at a spin class...and the young, buff teacher told me I had been great, because I " didn't give up".

You can go into tour overload..

European women don't wear hats...not sun, not baseball/golf...NO HATS
I am tired of my hat ...

Do not let anyone take a picture of you on tour from the back...better you don't know how unkempt you look...


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Location:Sailing day on the Jade

Athens: very old,very new

Docked before dawn! The ship's imperative seems to be " get these folks to a meeting place and OUT to the bus in 15 minutes. This doesn't actually feel like you are rushed, except for the fact that I am just not used to having breakfast when my feet hit the floor and it has taken a while for me to figure out what to get and eat...timing of the next meal is rather uncertain and I do like to have some fuel onboard...
Interestingly...the ship is parked exactly at the bus parking lot.



Practically speaking, the unrest in Greece caused the light rail and buses to be on strike today,so I think virtually all from the ship took a tour (perhaps that is always true). Our bus crept through morning traffic to the all marble, 60 thousand capacity Olympic Stadium before creeping through modern Athens to the Acropolis to see the Parthenon.




Tom and I were here many years ago...and have no memory of the crowds we joined at the Acropolis. Maybe that is a blessing...












None of this was in need of excavation, it has all been open to the elements, and people, over the centuries. Again, it is a huge piece of real estate honoring Athena and the New Museum of the Acropolis holds the saved originals that have been found here...except for the Elgin Marble pieces ...that are still in London

A lot of restoration...a lot of wind...a lot of people...

But worth the trip.

Athens spreads around the monument in endless waves, in every direction. Most of the population of Greece is here.






After lunch in the Plaka (old city) we walked to the Tomb of the unknown and crossed places where demonstrators were blocking a major street (with all manor of motorcycles) and we saw a heavy presence of police, riot gear, flak jackets and all...However, it was energetic, but not dangerous.


Back on the ship...a little tired

Location:Athens

Nine small cities parked at the Grand Canal today...

...and that was before 8 AM. I didn't see the ships that landed the rest of the day.



Tom and I unashamedly sprinted to arrive at Piazza San Marco ahead of their inhabitants. We bought our tickets to the Doge's Palace and spent two hours luxuriating in the opulence (and skulduggery) that was once Venice. The Palace Filled rapidly with eager learners and their tour guides. We wandered room to fabulous room with our audio guides explaining every inch of the rooms, because every inch is covered in art...Tintoretto , Bassano...on and on...the wallpaper of the centuries was done by artists renown...when the palace burned...there were new artists to rebuild, renovate, whatever. It is overwhelming. We saw much of this, dare I say, 40 years ago, and I now appreciate it.
An unexpected collection was near the end of the tour . These men were armed to the teeth and the weapons were not only vicious, they were, of course, beautifully decorated. I wished they would allow photos there were several rooms of them.



Happily we were blessed with a short line into San Marco itself. Many people stood in front of the no photo signs and snapped away, but I couldn't do it. There are not enough words to describe a beautifully preserved an 11th century basilica where every inch is old and beautiful. The bronze horses are THIRD century. There is no charge to enter the Church, but there is to see the Pala d'Oro and to climb to the Loggia to see the square from on high...and the horses.



We are gently sliding out of port...barely detectable motion.

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Location:Venice, Italy

Santorini is a very unique Island

This was a long treck from Corfu...we arrived at 1pm

Immediately you have to wonder how the first inhabitants decided to live there?.and then how they made it happen...all you see is CLIFFS. We were deposited WAYYYY to the right of this photo for buses to take us up incredibly narrow hairpin turns to reach the highest point on the island: a Monastery, of course. They were prayerful and not open to the public so we moved on



-
We drove on and found that there are two million visitors per year ( maybe they were with us today...?). And 14,000 year round inhabitants. They have no rain, the fog waters their grapes, which they grow on the ground with the vine making a rough basket for the fruit. They make a delicious group of wines, tasty pistachio/sesame treats, fabulous foods...but mostly show tourists around.

We concluded our day with a Greek dinner and dancing, with Tom's favorite: smashing plates on the ground where a dancer is being very brave ( I honestly do NOT remember that scene in Zorba the Greek!)
somehow we barely made it back to the cable car down the the beach where the LAST tender was waiting to take us back to our ship...OPA!

We are at sea again ( Ionian into the Agean)


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Location:Santorini, Greece

Mykonos...now...and then

The island of Mykonos claims 7 thousand inhabitants in the summer...4 thousand in winter. In it's pre-Roman heyday 30 thousand lived on Delos, a nearby island, with maybe ten thousand slaves lugging all manner of stones uphill to build a very complex and compact little enclave. They were good builders as there are a lot of walls still standing...they even prepared for the minor earthquakes that occur here. The second and third floors have crumbled. Vegetation is sparse at best and they had all the correct cisterns ready to collect any drop of water that fell.



Delos is the island where Zeus's lover, Leto, gave birth to their twins, Apollo and Artemis ( I think we know her as Diana). His current wife had not exactly been thrilled with the situation and forbid Mother Earth to give Leto refuge. Fortunately an island appeared among the waves for her...and ultimately became quite the destination to worship them all





The lions behind Tom are a part of the Lion's Terrace...meticulously carved...even though no one there had ever seen the animal ( they had seen vases and trinkets with the images.

Back to Mykonos ...it was constructed as a labyrinth so that invading pirates and such might get in...but would have a heck of a time getting out and the locals could attack in return..

This seems to have been a Venetian ruse....after they HAD occupied...and the Romans took over later...So much for good planning





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Location:Mykonos and Delos